Re-Diculous
by SaltyJak
Summary: A few months have passed since Timmy reacquired the Re-Do watch, and for the most part, everything was going great. For him. For a certain girl with glasses, black hair, and an unrequited crush on the brunet? Not so much.
1. Chapter 1

_Tootie's POV..._

Tootie sat on the couch in her living room, leaning on her elbow, which in turn was being used to prop her head up as she watched... Something on TV, she hadn't been paying it any mind, because something _far_ more interesting than her favorite show was taking place a few feet to her left in real life. That is, her sister; Vicky, was grinning.

Not the type of grin that she tended to sport when she had an evil plan forming in her head, nor the kind that adorned her face when she was particularly enjoying torturing one of the kids she(still!) babysat. No, this grin was more the type you might find on someone's face who'd just remembered a funny joke; one that wasn't quite funny enough to make them laugh. Or possibly the type you might shoot someone whose company you enjoy.

However, while the smile itself was certainly unusual, the raven-haired sixteen year old girl was _quite_ privy to the reason behind her sister's poorly concealed grin. Vicky may have been good at deceiving nearly any adult she came across, but hiding things from your family isn't so easy as hiding things from strangers, and Tootie had picked up on a few odd quirks before outright confronting her older sister.

For one, Vicky _never_ texted people. She always claimed to not care what people thought of what she had to say, so anytime she talked with someone on the phone, she tended to speak her mind, both about the person she was talking to, as well as anyone in her immediate vicinity whom she didn't like. Yet recently, the twenty-two year old had started texting a _certain someone_ rather frequently, enough that the incessant beeping her phone made to alert her to a new text was beginning to grate on Tootie's nerves.

Next were, of course, the smiles... Or grins... Or little smirks she'd get whenever her _mystery_ admirer would text her. Or rarely, call her. And as mentioned previously, these were not her usual sadistic smiles. These were genuine, oddly happy(or possibly content) smiles. Sure, Tootie was happy to see her older sister happy, but it still irked her everytime she caught one out of the corner of her eye. What- Or _who_ could make Vicky smile like a giddy schoolgirl?

Third, and certainly least important, was the red-head's new watch. It was by and large a simple little thing: all green, maybe a shade or two darker than the shirts she wore, unnecessary since she had a phone to keep time, and always on her person. In truth, Tootie was beginning to wonder if her older sister slept and showered with the damn thing on!

Finally, Tootie had caught her sister leaving the house on multiple occasions, and every time, she headed in the direction that Timmy's house was. Sure, several of these could likely be chalked up as her going to work, since she was still a babysitter(and Timmy's babysitter at that!), and there were more than likely a few clients _besides_ the Turners in said direction, but there were several more times that simply could not. The bespectacled girl knew the Turners' schedule, and therefore _knew_ when they were home; generally right around the time when everyone's parents would be home. So why then would Vicky be heading over there if she didn't need to babysit Timmy?

Tootie asked herself that very question countless times before she knew the truth, and had, to some extent; assumed correctly. Her older sister was indeed going over to the Turners' house to see Timmy... Just not for the reasons she'd once thought...

 _Ba-Ding!_

"Grr..." The raven-haired girl growled as Vicky received another text; a noise quickly followed by the red-head whipping her phone out with lightning speed, which was(unsurprisingly) followed by a little giggle. Y'know, the sound evil babysitters _can't_ physically make. "Gee, I wonder who _that_ could be." Tootie remarked in annoyance, her voice dripping with venom.

"Oh, just my boyfriend." Vicky responded absently, never taking her eyes off her phone. "And _some_ body sounds a _little_ jealous...!"

"I can't imagine _who_ you could be referring to." The younger of the two Valentine sisters responded icily. "I mean, it's not like someone _else_ has been chasing after him for the better part of eight _years_!" She spoke through clenched teeth as she turned away from her sister and the TV, opting instead to stare out the window. It was a bright and sunny day outside, a direct contrast to her feelings at the moment. "And let's not forget, your _underage_ boyfriend."

 _Vicky's POV..._

Vicky shook her head, somewhat disappointed by her sister's attitude. It had been three months since she and Timmy had... 'Practiced' kissing at his house, two months since they'd actually agreed to call it what it was(a relationship), and roughly one week since Tootie had found out about it. Needless to say, keeping it a secret for so long might not have been her best plan. Tootie was understandably... Miffed.

Yes, she knew about her younger sister's crush on the brunet, a crush that persisted even into their teenage years, but Timmy seemingly didn't like Tootie the way she liked him, and Tootie had yet to do anything drastic like tie him to a bed and have her way with him, so... So maybe Vicky had wanted to have a little fun, make the boy squirm a little, see if he had any redeeming qualities(besides the vast number she already knew about).

Not to mention, the red-head had reacquired what was essentially a get-out-of-jail-free card. She had no idea how the strange wristwatch worked, just that it let her undo any mistakes she'd made in the past five or so minutes. Her original intention had only been to see if Timmy was able to kiss well at all.

Because she was bored, just so we're clear.

Yet she'd underestimated him. For lack of a better term, she'd gotten a little too 'into it'(as did he), and thus, had to forfeit her plan when they went past the watch's apparent limit, which _then_ gave her the brilliant plan to simply say she was giving him practice. Said practice quickly began to blur the line between 'practice' and... Well, needless to say, that familiar couch in the Turners' living room got _far_ more use than it had in a long, _long_ time.

"Y'know he's still underage, right?" Tootie spoke up, her eyes narrowed in Vicky's direction.

"Eh, in California. I'm sure there are a few states where sixteen is the age of consent." Vicky shrugged nonchalantly as she reclined back into the couch, folding her arms behind her to use as a headrest. "Besides, he'll be seventeen in a month."

 _Tootie's POV..._

And that was what the girl disliked most about her sister's relationship with the boy she _thought_ she loved. Vicky didn't seem to care that she'd... She'd... Stolen Timmy away from her! The woman never showed even the smallest semblance of guilt over it, going so far as to flaunt the relationship in Tootie's face!

"Y-You two h-haven't...?" The raven-haired girl stared at her older sister, a look somewhere between shock, sadness, and disappointment etched on her face. The latter because... Well, it wasn't as if she felt Timmy was 'virgin territory' or anything, but... Some part of her did hold out hope that she'd be Timmy's first...

"Huh? You mean... Sex? You askin' if me and your crush have done the ole 'horizontal shuffle', Toots?" A bemused grin worked its way across Vicky's face.

"I- Well I- You two have been- So I'd think-" Tootie stuttered and stumbled over her words as she felt her face heat up, likely from the bright red blush she knew she had to be sporting. "Ha-hasn't it b-been two months now? Y-you two-"

"Depends on if we're counting the 'practice runs' or not." The red-head's quizzical smile soon changed into a somewhat more sultry one, her eyelids dropping halfway over her eyes. "You _really_ wanna know all the juicy little details about how _great_ Timmy is in bed?" Vicky raised an intrigued eyebrow at her sister.

" _Oh GOD, they have, haven't they?!"_ The look her sister was giving her was all Tootie's brain needed to start imagining Vicky and Timmy in various compromising positions throughout both Timmy's house, as well as the very house the raven-haired girl was already in. _"Where could they have done it?! How many_ times _could they have done it?! Vicky's room? The kitchen? The bathroom? ...This_ couch _?!"_ In a fraction of a second, Tootie's face went from flushed red with embarrassment to pale white, not unlike that of a ghost. "N-No! Nuh-uh! You're- You're lying just to... To mess with me!" The girl pointed her finger at her older sister accusingly. "There's- There's just no way."

"Oh?" The smile on Vicky's face changed again, this time to a look of mock-surprise. "And you're so sure of that...?"

Tootie's arm dropped back down to her side, realization setting in at how confident Vicky sounded. "H-Have you two...?"

"Hm? Why Tootie, where'd all that confidence go?" The older girl spoke in that sickeningly sweet tone she reserved for the adults she loved to con. "You seemed pretty sure of yourself a few seconds ago, but now..."

"I-..." Tootie began, but cut herself off with an audible gulp as a strange, bitter taste made itself known in the back of her throat. "I gotta go..." Without even bothering to grab her jacket(it _was_ February), the bespectacled girl stood up from the couch almost robotically, then made her way over to the front door of her house and left, shutting the door behind her.

Once outside, Tootie took several deep breaths. She felt... Almost nauseous, or like she'd been kicked squarely in the stomach by someone with steel-toed boots. _"Or Vicky."_ "Dammit, can't she ever stop being that way?! Just once, I wish she wouldn't try so hard to get under my skin and make me feel-!" She let out a noise somewhere between a growl and a scream as she dropped down onto her front steps, the cold cement quickly reminding her butt that it was cold out, even for southern California. "-Like I lost..."

 _Ba-Ding!_

"Motherf-" Tootie gritted her teeth at the annoying sound, only to realize it was her own phone that received a text this time. "Ugh! Note to self: Change your _fucking_ text alert sound!" As she pulled her phone out of the pocket of the black button-up vest she wore, Tootie released an exasperated breath, venting some of her pent up anger at the annoying woman she called her big sister. A look at her phone quickly told her who the text was from. "Chester."

 _:Heeeeeeeyyyyyyyyy:_

The now significantly colder sixteen year old girl rolled her eyes at the elongated word the blond teen sent her. If he was trying to get her attention, he had it, but... "A _reason_ would be nice!" Tootie yelled at her phone as if it was the source of all her woes. "Fine, y'know what? This should be good. This'll be interesting." Rather than text the boy back, she opted to instead hit the 'call' button and began tapping her foot impatiently as the phone rang.

"Yo-"

"What." In truth, she wasn't mad at Chester, but it seemed his unfortunate luck still burdened him, as Tootie needed someone to rant at, and the blond had just painted a big target all over his face.

 _Chester's POV..._

"Uh..." Chester looked at his phone curiously. He _had_ called the right person, right? Tootie certainly had a temper, but she'd never answered the phone in such an irritated voice before. "T-Tootie...?"

"Yeah. Me. What do you want?"

The blond teen released a sigh of relief as he wiped imaginary sweat off his brow. "Oh, okay cool. I thought I dialed the wrong-"

"Chester. I'm outside my house with no jacket, my ass is half-frozen, I'm suddenly super-hungry, and I'm having an all-around _shit_ day. What. Do. You. Want?"

At his friend's response, Chester very nearly winced and moved the phone away from his ear. He half expected her to blow up at him, judging by her tone, and was positive she'd be glaring daggers at him if they were talking face to face. "Er... You busy then?" He listened as he heard what sounded like a growl, followed by 'What kind of question-', then a sigh of _very_ clear annoyance. "Cuz... My dad's uh... Well, dealer just showed up, and he made some calls; now we've got like, twelve people squeezed into a trailer meant for two people at the max..."

"Chester?"

"And the whole place is starting to smell a little... Skunky? If you get my meaning- Achoo!" The blond scratched at his nose as a foul-smelling cloud of smoke was blown his way.

"Chester." Tootie was growing annoyed again. Yes, Chester and her were pretty close, but he had a tendency to... Ramble. A lot.

"And I was just wondering if you'd be up to... Literally anything else. I'd take Crocker's algebra class over this. Please?" Despite knowing that Tootie would more than likely talk his ear off about something bad that happened between her and Timmy, or worse, her and _Vicky_ , the teen preferred taking his chances with a cute, somewhat irate girl over the Dimmsdale Police Department. Strange as that may seem.

"Chester... I really don't feel like..." The girl paused as a strong gust blew over her, loud enough to be heard on Chester's phone, even with the loud partying going on a few feet away.

"Are you seriously out there without a jacket Tootie? You lookin' to get sick?" The teen spoke in a playful tone, though truthfully, he was worried about her. Tootie always seemed to have a slightly weaker immune system than the rest of their little clique, though situations not dissimilar to this one might explain many of the times she'd been sick in middle school. "C'mon... I'll get my dad's car, grab some of my savings, take you out to dinner... And best of all, I'll listen! You can tell me what's eating you! You're not gonna make me beg, are ya?"

"Agh... Alright, fine. Not like there's anything else I need to do today... You know where I live, come pick me up."

"Really?! Sweet! I'll be there in fiv-" A flat and disappointed look came over the blond's face as he heard his phone beep, indicating that Tootie had hung up on him. "Jeez, she _must_ be pissed about something to almost turn down free food _and_ hang up without saying 'bye'." Chester scratched his chin as he dropped his phone into the inner pocket of his jacket, producing a jingle from said pocket as his phone collided with his dad's car keys. Hid dad, Bucky Mcbadbat couldn't always be trusted with operating a motor vehicle, which suited Chester just fine, as the car got more use from him than his dad anyway. _"All I need now is..."_

The teen lifted up his mattress, beneath which was a small, latched metal box. He'd never been the type to hoard money when he was younger(hard to do when you're dirt poor), but as he got older, he began to. Generally for situations like the one he currently found himself in, though it was Veronica, not Tootie that he planned to take out to dinner.

After grabbing an amount he deemed to be acceptable, Chester tucked the box back under his mattress and made his way out of his trailer before one of his dad's friends could make him an offer to 'hit this shit'. No, he most certainly wasn't a boy scout, and did indeed get high on occasion, but for one, Tootie wasn't a big fan of the skunky smell, and second, Chester preferred _good_ weed.

 _Vicky's POV..._

"So easy to rile up... That's why you're my _little_ sister." Vicky shook her head back and forth as she stood up from the couch, then frowned as her phone once again beeped, letting her know she had _another_ text message. "And _you're_ clingier than a tree frog." This time, the red-head didn't bother to reply as she crossed her living room over to the stairs and made her way up them.

 _Ba-Ding!_

"Seriously Twerp?" She took out her phone, just to make sure it was indeed Timmy who was texting her. "Can I get up to my room and grab my coa-" Vicky began as she opened the door to her room, but cut herself off in genuine surprise as she walked in, only to find her 'boyfriend' reclining comfortably on her bed.

A quick look around her room revealed the fact that her window; the one overlooking the side yard, was open, cold air from the tail-end of winter blowing in.

"Really." Vicky deadpanned at the teen, who offered a feigned look of surprise himself upon hearing her voice. "You actually climbed up the side of my house and in through the window?"

"'Oh, hey Timmy! Nice of you to drop by and surprise me, your girlfriend!' 'Ah well, y'know, I like to be spontaneous, since you said you liked it.'" The brunet turned over onto his side, propping himself up on his left elbow. "Aren't you happy to see me? You gotta admit, for someone with almost no upper body strength, climbing up the side of a two story house is pretty impressive!" Timmy shot the older girl a happy smile as he finished.

And as usual, said older girl found she just couldn't stay even mildly annoyed; let alone _mad_ , at her Twerp's cute antics. "Hah..." Vicky leaned back against the door to her room, using her body weight to close it as her gaze dropped to her feet. More to hide the smile and light blush blooming across her cheeks than anything else. "Well as your girlfriend I'm impressed..."

"I did learn from the best!" Timmy turned over to drop onto his back again, hands behind his head to form a makeshift pillow.

"But as your babysitter; y'know, the person who's supposed to make sure you stay out of trouble and don't get hurt? Yeah... You're a jackass. Don't do it again."

"Aw... I always knew you cared!"

"Yeah, listen to me, the 'evil babysitter'..." Vicky again shook her head as she moved to her window and closed it. "Grinning like an idiot and doing a shit job at hiding it." Causally, she made her way over to her bed, then sat down in the middle of it, Timmy's legs right behind her. "Worrying over some Twerp like he's special to me or something...!" She jumped as she felt sudden movement behind her, yet relaxed as she realized it was just Timmy making himself more comfortable... By laying his head in her lap, his gaze trained up toward her.

"I thought I _was_ special to you?" The brunet pouted sadly, sticking out his lower lip for little more than melodramatic effect.

"Oh stop it, you _know_ you are." The red-head glanced away as she felt her blush starting to return. "...We keep this up, and I can kiss my reputation goodbye..."

"Hey, don't mutter under your breath." The sixteen year old narrowed his eyes playfully. "I like hearing your voice, along with just about everything else about you."

" _Kid's really pouring on the charm today..."_ "Alright, what do you want?" Vicky glanced down at the boy in her lap while still keeping her head turned away.

"Huh? What's that supposed-"

"Timmy. I _know_ you're nice to me. I get it. More than I deserve after all that I've blah blah blah..." She waved her hand in a shooing motion, the whole 'I don't deserve you' conversation already having been discussed more times than she was willing to admit. "...But there's _nice_ , then there's being a charming kiss-up. You're doing the second one right about now...!" Again, Vicky jumped, this time as she felt the teen's lips connect with one of the more ticklish parts of her hip. _"He's never letting me live that down..."_

"I was just wondering..." Timmy began-

"Aw... Honey? You know I'm not _that_ easy!" Yet was cut off by his girlfriend, the red-head once more speaking in her fake, overly sweet tone.

"Right. You want me to work for it-"

"And you're not even sure if we're ready anyway~" Vicky sang out sweetly, earning her an annoyed look from the brunet.

" _Uh-huh_... Which is why I'm wondering... Why make Tootie think we've done-"

"Each other?" The red-head smirked as she finished Timmy's question for him.

"Yeah, that's... Pretty much where I was going with that..."

Vicky's smirk remained. She actually found it kind of cute that Timmy; full of raging hormones as he was(or was supposed to be?), wasn't too keen on the idea of sex, and got rather flustered when it came to intimacy in general. Not to say he was a prude(especially not after their time on the couch), but the sixteen year old never pushed the issue like Ricky had. In fact, he tended to stop _well_ before she wanted to. Frustrating at times? Yes. But still cute.

"Eh, sometimes it's fun to mess with her." She shrugged indifferently as she gently lifted Timmy's head off her lap, then reoriented herself into her bed, sliding up it to rest her head on her pillow and lay down properly, leaving her and the teen's earlier positions reversed. "'Sides, what you and I do or don't do behind closed doors isn't her business. If she didn't want an answer, she shouldn't have asked the question."

"No, but... Ah..." Timmy rubbed the back of his head and sighed. He would've liked to agree with Vicky's logic, but the red-head's somewhat mean-spirited comments weren't helping his waning friendship with the raven-haired girl... If they could even still be called 'friends'. Ever since Tootie had found out about him and Vicky, she hadn't spoken so much as a word to him, she practically avoided him like the plague!

"Lemme guess, Tootie's still not talking to you?" Vicky closed her eyes, already knowing her guess was right.

"Yeah..." The brunet swung his legs up onto the bed, laying himself down next to his girlfriend. "I mean, we were just- Everything was fine before she found out about me and you! We got along great, she wasn't being _nearly_ as creepy... She even called me... Agh... What was it? Onii-chan!" Timmy snapped his fingers as he remembered Tootie's affectionate moniker for him.

"Gesundheit."

"It means 'older brother' in Japanese... I think."

"Ah. More of her weird anime terms... Well, heheh... If she's calling you older brother, but she's all bent outta shape that we're dating..." The red-head couldn't suppress a giggle at the... Unfortunate implications running through her head. "Maybe she wants her 'Onii-chan' all to herself, huh?"

"Yeah yeah... Imply whatever you want to imply, I don't think she sees it the way you do. It's probably just a term of endearment or something..." The teen nuzzled up closer to Vicky, just now realizing he was a little chilly from the jog over to her house.

"Like Twerp." With the teen now pressing himself against her, Vicky could feel how cold he was, and instinctively turned over toward him, draping her right arm and leg over him. "Could've just waited for me to come over to _your_ house, rather than freeze your ass off on the walk over here, y'know..."

"What? And miss out on some warm cuddling time with my girlfriend? No way!" Timmy; still being a bit shorter than the red-head holding him in a somewhat protective embrace, moved a bit closer so his head was below her own, the top of it lightly pressing against her chin.

"Like I said earlier, clingy as a treefrog..." Vicky felt her cheeks redden and heat up at the strange, warm feeling in her chest.

"Pfft. Bae knew what she was getting into."

"Oh god, is that more moonspeak? Bae? It sounds dangerously close to 'Babe', and _I_ know that _you_ know that a certain _dickhead_ who shall not be named used to call me Babe."

"Well... It is a shortened version of 'babe'..." Timmy spoke hesitantly, knowing better than to bring Ricky up around his girlfriend. "But it can also be short for 'before anyone else'...?"

The twenty-two year old moved back just enough to meet Timmy's gaze and stare at him quizzically. "That's... Actually kind of sweet of you to say..."

"I like to think I can be sweet-"

"And you're a dork." Vicky interrupted him with a deadpan stare, then pulled the brunet close again, breaking their brief eye contact.

"I thought I was a Twerp?" Timmy spoke in a defiant tone as he half-heartedly struggled to escape the older girl's grip.

"You are. But I guess you're a dork too." She tightened her grip, silently telling the brunet to stop moving, even if he was just playing around.

And after three-ish months of dating his babysitter, Timmy had become fairly adept at picking up on the girl's silent requests(or demands, at times). "Y'know... I'm starting to think she hates me..."

"Hm? You mean Tootie?" Vicky spoke in a sleepy-sounding voice. She was already pretty warm, and that, coupled with laying in bed with her boyfriend, was quickly making her drowsy.

"Lately, she'll just pretend I don't even exist. She talks to Chester and AJ, but I might as well be invisible..." Timmy sighed into Vicky's chest wearily. "I don't know what to do. I want the two of us to still be friends, but... Chester and AJ don't know about us, and she hasn't told them or anything..."

"Just stop." The red-head perked up slightly, but it was more because Timmy wasn't letting her sleep than anything else. "Tootie's always been easy to rile up, and she gets all emotional over the drop of a hat, nevermind her older sister 'stealing' the boy she's been crushing on for about eight years. If you're looking for advice, I don't have any."

"But-!"

"Look Timmy, she probably just needs time. Keep your distance from her for a while, and maybe she'll find some new guy to crush on and chase after. You're not helping her or yourself by wishing things could turn out different... And you're not letting me get my beauty rest either." Vicky made sure to sound just the slightest bit threatening as she finished.

"I... I guess so." The buck-toothed teen at last relented and fell silent. Much as he'd rather spend his time with his girlfriend more productively, just laying in bed with her... Was pretty nice.

 _Tootie's POV..._

Once again, Tootie found herself sitting down, leaning on her elbow, which in turn held up her head. This time; however, it was not the living room of the Valentine household she found herself in, but Chester's dad's car. With its heated leather seats, oddly clean interior, and the fact that it was some model of sports car... Well, something just didn't add up for the raven-haired girl. "Is this... Stolen?"

"Hm? Is what stolen?" The blond glanced out of the corner of his eye at the girl in the passenger seat. The same girl who had been strangely quiet since he'd picked her up from the front porch of her house.

"The car. Didn't you say... This was your dad's or something?"

"Yup. Gets more use from me than dad though, since he doesn't want to get the band going anymore. It's nice, right?" Chester floored the gas pedal, revving the engine and sending them speeding through the normally calm Dimmsdale suburbs. "And she purrs like a kitten, even at this speed!"

Tootie rolled her eyes at her friend's confident tone. She never could figure out why Chester went out of his way to impress her when she was around. "Youre avoiding the question."

"Ah c'mon, Tootie. I'm just _borrowing_ it form my dad, not like he needs it tonight." The blond let up on the accelerator as a stop sign came into view, and eventually brought the car to a stop next to it. "And no, my dad didn't steal the car. Something you might not know about him is that, despite how unlucky our last name might be, he's actually pretty good with cars."

The raven-haired girl glanced to her right as they remained in the intersection. "You're good on this side." She then turned her attention back toward Chester as the car lurched forward. "Alright, but did he _legally_ acquire this particular car?"

"If by 'legally', you mean bought it for a thousand bucks from some lady in a bar parking lot a few months back, then yes." Hoping the answer would satisfy his suddenly talkative friend, Chester relaxed into his seat, letting up on the gas pedal as they came closer to the actual city part of Dimmsdale. "And no, I dunno why he got it for so cheap, maybe because it barely ran when she sold it to him." He shrugged indifferently as he finished.

"Hm." It was Tootie's turn to shrug as she returned her gaze to the passenger side window. In the time it had taken Chester to come and pick her up, then drive her away from her house, the sun had begun to set, painting the sky bright orange and yellow as twilight set in. "So where're you taking me anyway? I didn't even say where I wanted to eat..."

"Well... where do you wanna go? I've got... Eh... Some money, so as long as we don't have to go to... Giovanni's or something, I think we'll be good." The blond teen rubbed the back of his head as he took a moment to think over his words.

Seeing her friend's nervous habit pop up, Tootie couldn't help but smirk. She wanted tease him for it, if only a little. "Y'know, when you're taking a girl out to eat, you're not really supposed to immediately rule out the more expensive restaurants. Kinda gives away the fact that you don't have much money."

 _Chester's POV..._

" _Crap! I knew there was something fishy about saying that!"_ "Uh-heh, well... I mean, I _am_ kind of... Poor." The teen felt a slight warmth in his cheeks at the well-known confession. It certainly wasn't a secret that the Mcbadbat's weren't the most well-off family in Dimmsdale. That wasn't to say they were the poorest either, but there were times when Chester and his dad struggled to get by... Yet he'd always taken that for granted. Even the jokes and insults about being 'lower class' from the popular clique didn't really get to him, yet when he outright admitted it to Tootie... "B-besides, Giovanni's is where you go on a... A date, y'know?"

"But I'm feeling down today-y-y!" Tootie whined out, sounding more like a ten year old than someone who was more than halfway through her teens. "C'mon, when your best friend is sad, you're supposed to be nice to her and treat her to a nice dinner!"

"I'm _the best friend? Since when?"_ "A-Alright! If you really want to... I guess we can go to Giovanni's... Might need you to help out with the bill though..." The blond relented, against his better judgment.

"Oh hush. I'm just messing around!" The raven-haired girl gave Chester's shoulder a light shove and giggled. "It's nice of you to want to bring me somewhere fancy, just to cheer me up, but I'm not in the mood for Italian tonight."

" _Oh thank god. Dunno if Tootie would be very keen on eating and running..."_ Chester sighed, his mind at ease now that he realized Tootie was just joking. "Starting to act like a certain evil babysitter we know..."

"Ugh. Don't even. Not today... I like joking around, Vicky... Vicky likes torturing people, kicking small children, stealing peoples' crushes..." Tootie muttered icily, her mood once again souring at hearing her sister's name.

"She's still like that, huh? I figured she would've calmed down with age..." Unlike AJ and Timmy, Chester hadn't been babysat by the red-head in over three years, due to her prices being more than his dad could afford. And aside from the occasional visit to Timmy or Tootie's house, he very rarely saw her at all.

"Hah! My _sister_ is the same as ever. I bet she's still the worst person around, even in an alternate frickin' universe! Dammit, when is Karma gonna come and bite her right in her stupid-!" She cut herself off, her anger beginning to fizzle out. "...Sorry, it's... It's been a rough day." Tootie ran her hand through her hair, then simply leaned her head against the passenger window.

"Yeah... Um... What was that about, anyway? You usually remember to put a coat on when you go outside in winter..." Chester again glanced at his friend out of the corner of his eye, keeping his focus _mostly_ on the road.

Tootie had; unsurprisingly, a similar fashion sense now to the one she had when she, Timmy, AJ, and Chester himself had first met. A black, button-up sleeveless vest over a plain white, short sleeve dress shirt, and a plaid, knee-length skirt, the predominant color of which was violet, with the pattern itself being made up of green and black lines. When it was relatively warm, she tended to keep her legs bare, but due to the cold weather, currently adopted a pair of black leggings into the ensemble. He could've sworn she used to wear little black shoes with buckles on them when she was ten, but now apparently opted to wear sneakers instead.

"I was pissed off." The raven-haired girl mumbled out, a clear venomous tinge lacing her words.

"...So... You wanna maybe... Talk about it?" Chester spoke up somewhat nervously. On one hand, he was well aware that talking things out could make a situation better, easier to deal with... On the other, talking about something uncomfortable meant reopening old wounds, which could make her mad, and when Tootie got mad, she tended to get... Vocal. "Or... What about Timmy? I'm sure he-"

"Hmph, yeah right. Timmy and I haven't talked in _weeks_ , you know that."

"Right..." How could he have forgotten? Tootie had been going out of her way to ignore Timmy for the past several weeks now. She'd talk to AJ, and him, of course, but barely even looked at Timmy, nevermind spoke to him. _"Doesn't help that Timmy has no idea what's bugging her either... But how could he? She won't talk to him..."_ "Okay, um..." The blond slowed to a stop as the car came to a red light. "What's going on between you and Timmy then?"

"...Nothing." Tootie's voice cracked when she spoke, her gaze still turned toward the window, rather than Chester.

"You know you can... Tell me, right? If you two... I dunno, tried dating, and things didn't work out? I mean, I know _something_ happened if you won't even talk to him... You do know he doesn't know either, right?" Chester began driving again, taking a left as he did, and quickly realizing he'd been driving in circles through Dimmsdale for the past ten or so minutes. _"Probably should've asked her where she wanted to go before this..."_

"Hah!" The bespectacled girl laughed humorlessly. " _Right_. He doesn't know?" She spoke in a low tone; voice sounding like it might break again. "Trust me, he _knows_ why, and if he doesn't? ...Then he's a fucking idiot."

The blond winced again at his friend's language, and the tone with which she said it. Even at sixteen, she had a strange habit of censoring herself in conversation. For her to not even bother; as well as talk about his best friend, the guy she'd been crushing on for... Well, as long as he'd known her; in such a way, it was clear that Timmy must have done _something_ to make her feel the way she was... "Ugh..." Chester sighed, leaning forward to rest his chin on the steering wheel. _"I'm_ so _not cut out for this crap..."_ He again glanced over at Tootie. It was clear she was hurting over whatever this thing was that had driven her and Timmy apart, but for all Chester's attempts at prodding her, it didn't seem like he was going to get anything out of her.

After a few minutes of silence between the two teens, Tootie opted to break it as she heard a grumble of protest from her stomach. "Chester, where are we going anyway?"

"Oh... Uh, I dunno. Lost track of things, I guess... I... Oh!" The blond snapped his fingers as an idea came to mind. "There's a new- Well... It's not really _new_ , but I don't think I've ever taken you there before, wanna try it out?"

 _Tootie's POV..._

The raven-haired girl didn't immediately respond, wanting to take a few minutes to think it over, though she was beginning to have the sneaking suspicion that they'd been driving in circles for the past fifteen minutes. _"Much rather just go home, curl up in bed and..."_ Tootie felt a slight pain in her chest, right around where her heart was. For all she knew, Vicky and Timmy might be there, doing...

And even if Timmy wasn't there, her sister would be, just waiting for her to come back so she could taunt her, remind her of the chance at love she'd lost. Remind her that she and Timmy were...

Her eyes felt hot and swollen, it took more than she even knew she had to keep the tears from falling, but somehow, she did. "...I don't care. Let's just grab something to eat I guess... But you'd better not be taking me to Nasty Burger, Chester."

"What kind of friend would I be if I took you to the restaurant you hate when you're feeling down? You know me better than that, don't you Tootie?" Chester chuckled as they stopped at the familiar red light, but this time, drove straight when it changed, rather than taking a left. "Bu-u-ut..." He drawled out as his lips curled up into a playful smirk. "If I'm gonna take you out to eat, I'm gonna want something in return, deal?"

Tootie glanced toward her friend, though since she was still facing the window, she was mostly just looking at the windshield. "...Depends on what it is." She spoke in a cautious tone, hearing the slight mirth in Chester's.

"Well... I figure fair's fair, right Toots?"

" _I hate that fucking nickname..."_ She turned her head fully now, only to see that Chester did indeed have a shit-eating grin on his face, eliciting a sigh from the bespectacled girl. "Alright. Since you came to pick me up, and listened to me bitch, I guess I _kind of_ owe you..."

"So it's a deal then?" The blond teen turned and quirked an inquisitive eyebrow up at the girl in the passenger seat, earning him a nod in the affirmative. "Cool, we're just about at the restaurant too."

" _Shit. What did I just agree to...?"_ Tootie facepalmed as the car slowed, then turned into a modest parking lot, with an equally modest building at the far end of it. The first thing she noticed about said building, aside from it's odd-yet-inviting distinction of being wood and brick; was the sign, bright orange-yellow, and indicating the name of the restaurant as 'Grillby's'. An oddly warm, off-yellow light poured out through the windows, themselves having heavy parted curtains in them. "Who or what is a Grillby?" Tootie asked skeptically as she heard Chester's door open.

The teen offered another smirk as he leaned down and stared at the girl, only now seeing that her eyes were a bit red. "Guess you'll have to come in and find out, huh?"

* * *

A/N: You're probably wondering what I'm doing _now_ , always putting out new stuff at weird times, sometimes forgetting to update fics for months(or a year). Well... I dunno. All I do know is that I'm alone again. And it sucks.


	2. Chapter 2

_Tootie's POV..._

" _I guess this place isn't... Too bad..."_ Tootie glanced around at the interior of the restaurant known as 'Grillby's', instantly recognizing the meaning behind the name. Just about everything on the menu was, unsurprisingly; grilled. Chester had mentioned something to her about the place _actually_ being named after the owner, who merely chose to serve predominantly grilled food for simplicity's sake, but she wasn't sure if she bought that explanation, it was too ridiculous and convenient.

As for the interior style of the restaurant, it seemed to have a bit of a western vibe, with an old timey bar with wood paneling and matching stools, in addition to sturdy wooden tables and chairs. And like many restaurants, there were a few booths located against the left and right walls. All in all, Tootie found it to be a pretty cozy and friendly environment, not to mention it was nice and warm inside, the exact opposite of Dimmsdale, now that the sun had set.

The raven-haired girl turned her attention to her blond friend, whose face had been buried deep in a menu for the past few minutes. "How long has this place been around?" Tootie turned to look over the back of the booth they currently sat in, her gaze directed out into the cold Dimmsdale evening. The restaurant wasn't in an area she'd call _un_ familiar, but she'd never noticed 'Grillby's' until today.

"Hm?" Chester lowered his menu, eyebrows still knitted together in concentration from trying to decide what he wanted to eat. "Oh, Grillby's? Um... I dunno, actually. I only stumbled across the place about... Maybe eight months ago? It's actually not that new, according to some of the people who eat here." Chester nodded toward the bar area, seated at which were two people, a short, somewhat stout man in a bluish coat and dark-colored pants, and a smaller figure, probably a child no older than ten with brown hair, who wore a blue and pinkish striped shirt with blue jeans. "Those two are pretty much always here."

"Huh..." Tootie stared at the backs of the two people at the bar, watching as the taller one grabbed the salt shaker and held it over his plate of fries, only for the top to pop off and cover his food in a mountain of salt, which in turn elicited a soft giggle from the person to his right, who Tootie was now almost positive was a girl. Shaking her head, Tootie again turned her attention to Chester, only to find his face buried back into the menu. "So you come here often?" The girl groaned as she realized what she'd just said a second too late. "That wasn't-"

The blond again lowered his menu, a sly grin now adorning his face. "Not as often as I'd like to."

"Ugh!" Tootie rapidly shook her head back and forth at Chester's pun. "How am I supposed to be depressed with you telling perverted jokes?!" The girl struggled to keep the smile blooming across her face in check, resulting in a strange half-smile, half-frown that made her lips quiver.

"Hey, you walked right into that one, Tootie. It would've been a crime not to take advantage." Chester shrugged indifferently. "Besides, the whole point of me taking you out to dinner is to cheer you up, if that means I have to tell perverted jokes, you'll just have to deal." The teen finished by sticking his tongue out at the girl, then placed his menu down on the table and closed it. "Think I'll get a burger and fries."

"How original." Tootie said sarcastically and rolled her eyes. "Might as well have just gone to Nasty Burger if you wanted _that_."

"Eh, you don't mess with a good thing. Nasty Burger still fries a lot of their food, this place grills it, so it's healthier and stuff." The blond teen took a sip from his soda, expecting his friend to take a few more minutes deciding.

"I guess we'll see then." Tootie closed her own menu and dropped it on top of Chester's. "I'll have the same... Oh!" She exclaimed as the boy began to slide out of the booth. "Can you ask them to make it a veggie burger though?"

" _Veggie_?!" Chester asked in horror, his face screwing up into a disgusted grimace. "Since when do you eat... _No_!" The teen joked with a laugh. "I'm gonna get made fun of for asking them for that!"

"No you won't!" Tootie chuckled at how dramatic her friend was being. "Just tell them it's for me, it'll be fine! C'mon, pwetty pwease...?" The girl leaned in, lowering her glasses and exposing her violet eyes to Chester, which now looked as though they were brimming with tears.

"You-! I-! ...Augh! You're just taking advantage of me because I'm weak! You know I can't say no to that face!" Chester exclaimed in defeat, dramatically hanging his head and arms down.

Tootie sighed contentedly as she leaned back and adjusted her glasses. "Ah... I know. Such a burden it is, being cute, I mean."

The blond did little more than roll his eyes as he turned away from Tootie with their menus and made his way over to the bar, then began conversing with the bartender.

" _Weird... No waiters or waitresses, just..."_ Tootie looked at the bartender and squinted, hoping she could read his nametag from where she was, but gave up as Chester stepped in front of the man, blocking her view. "Probably named 'Grillby' to keep up with appearances or something..." She took another quick glance around the restaurant. Aside from her, Chester, the two at the bar, and the bartender himself, the place was essentially dead; suited her fine, less people meant less noise, and she didn't need to deal with a headache on top of everything else after today.

The raven-haired girl had to admit, she was glad to be out of the house, and even happier to be with someone she knew, rather than alone. It was safe to say that, after Timmy, Chester was the person in their little group she was closest to, especially now that the brunet was dating her sister, their 'evil' babysitter. Sure, she had a lot in common with AJ too, and found it... Well, easier to have an intelligent conversation with him, but the bald teen could be a bit of a snob at times, not to mention the fact that he barely had time to hang out, what with him enrolling in one of the(relatively) local colleges.

Chester, on the other hand, hadn't changed too much from when they were ten. He put in some effort at school, keyword being 'some', but most of the knowledge that allowed him to barely pass his classes seemed to leave him as soon as the teen left the grounds of Dimmsdale High. Still, knowledge wasn't everything, as Tootie herself could attest in regards to AJ, who rarely picked up on when the rest of their group was feeling down. She never encountered that problem with Chester though. He was always able to recognize when she was upset, and usually insisted on coming over to help in some way, unless she told him she wanted to be alone, at which point he would just text her stupid(and sometimes perverted) jokes until she was giggling like a schoolgirl.

Tootie brought her hands up onto the table and clasped them together, taking on a posture that some might mistake for praying. Her eyes drifted back over to her blond friend, who had by now ended his conversation with the bartender, and moved on to talking to the blue-jacketed man. With his head turned toward Chester, the girl could see that his skin was unusually pale, nearly bone-white, and the eye she could see was almost... Sunken deep into the eye socket. Stout as he appeared to be, the man looked more _skeleton_ than man. _"Yeah... That's not creepy at all..."_ Tootie felt a shiver run up her spine as she averted her gaze from the conversation and instead stared down at her hands, her mother had always told her it wasn't polite to stare at people. _"Should've brought something to occupy the time..."_

 _Meanwhile, Timmy's POV..._

The brunet laid awake in bed, his forehead resting against his girlfriend's chest as her arms and one leg remained wrapped around him. Comfortable and drowsy as he was, the teen couldn't quite get to sleep, as his brain chose now to plague him with thoughts about Tootie. He'd heard the whole conversation between her and Vicky, including the loud slam from the front door when she stormed out of the Valentine household, but what he _hadn't_ heard was the door open and close again, meaning Tootie was still outside, in the cold, and very likely to _not_ be dressed for it. "Hey... Vicky?"

"Mmm..." The red-head let out a low moan in her sleep, but didn't respond further.

"Vicky, I should probably go check and make sure Tootie's alright..." Timmy attempted to slide backward, away from Vicky, but only managed a few inches before he was near-instantly pulled back, and the girl nuzzled her chin against the top of his head. _"So_ this _is how a teddy bear must feel..."_ He thought as he tried to move again, this time twisting his body around, rather than trying to get away from his girlfriend.

After several more minutes of struggling, twisting, and a little tickling, Timmy was able to turn his body completely away from Vicky's, giving him the space he needed to fish his phone out of his pocket, though with the red-head's arms still wrapped tightly around his chest, he wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. The teen opened the phone's text interface and started writing a text to Tootie, just to make sure she was alright, but paused after the first few words. _"No way she's gonna respond even if I_ do _say I'm worried about her... Hope she's not still sulking on the porch..."_

After a few _more_ minutes of deliberation, a new idea formed in the teen's head. "Chester and Tootie have been hanging out together a lot... Maybe I could ask him to come and check on her...?" Ridiculous as he felt to have to resort to asking his best friend to check on their mutual friend who was probably only twenty feet away, Timmy began mashing the buttons of his phone's keyboard.

 _:Hey, you mind checking in on Toots at her house? She's still not texting me back, and I'm kinda worried. .:_

"No phones in class, Twerrrpp..." Timmy heard Vicky speak in a sleepy tone from behind him as he felt a light nibble on his neck and a cool hand slid up his right arm, eventually settling on his hand, bidding him to stop texting.

"I- Uh... Heh..." The brunet stumbled over his words as he felt goosebumps break out across his arms and chest. In much the same way he'd found Vicky's more sensitive spots back when he reacquired the Re-Do watch, the red-head had made it a point to find his, her obvious favorite being the sensitive flesh of his neck. "I th-thought you-ah... Were s-sleeping...?" He felt Vicky pull away, the light warmth from her lips quickly dissipating.

"With all the moving around my Twerp's been doing? How could I get _any_ sleep?" She spoke in a mildly slurred drawl, sleep evidently still having a strong grip on her mind. "So what're you up to at this hour?"

"Vicky, it's only six-thirty." The teen responded flatly.

"...So what're you up to at this hour?" The red-head repeated in the exact same tone as she'd spoken a moment earlier, her head lazily dropping down onto the bed with a muffled thump.

"I was just-"

"Wait!" Vicky interrupted with all the energy her tired body could muster. "Lemme guess, you're worried about Toots, right?"

The brunet sighed wearily as he slid back up against his girlfriend. "Did that watch happen to come with psychic powers too? Or... Did you just Re-Do and I can't remember?"

Vicky hummed out a light giggle as she tightened her arms around Timmy. "It's just the power I have from dating you, and knowing you for half of the time you've been alive." She leaned forward and up a little, then planted another quick kiss on the teen's cheek. "Besides, you'd remember if I used the watch anyway."

"Point taken." Timmy relaxed into Vicky's embrace as he felt her lay her head back down above his. Strange as it was, he'd already grown quite used to this new, affectionate Vicky that he proudly(only around her) called his girlfriend. The times exactly like this were the ones he cherished the most, since the only person who actually knew about the relationship was Tootie, Vicky acted very much like her old self when they _weren't_ alone, and he simply hadn't told anyone else about it. Chester would have a field day, more than likely proclaiming his best friend had tamed the dragon that was their babysitter, while AJ... _"Would probably blue screen for a couple days..."_

It would've been nice if he'd just wished that Tootie never put two and two together and found out about him and her older sister, but he knew she wasn't dumb. She'd find out again sooner or later, and just go through that heartache all over again. He didn't want that for her.

Still, it _would_ be nice to have their old relationship back, the girl absolutely refused to speak to him, and all he could do was play dumb around his friends and hope Tootie never told them. Not until he did, at least. "Argh... What am I gonna do?" Timmy mumbled under his breath, hoping to avoid waking the girl behind him up again.

"Could take my... Advice..." Vicky spoke once again, still sounding like she was on the verge of unconsciousness.

"I know I _should_... She obviously still doesn't want anything to do with me, but... I'm just worried she'll get sick or something. Tootie's still my friend..."

"In here..." The red-head tapped her index finger against Timmy's chest, right where his heart was. "But if she's been... Ignoring you since she found out about us... Can you..."

The blue-eyed teen listened as Vicky trailed off, her breathing becoming slow and steady. "Can I...? Vicky?" He turned over slightly, giving her a gentle nudge as he did.

"Mmhm... Ah..." Vicky opened her eyes, now feeling heavy with sleep, and yawned. "Sorry, can you be so sure that a friendship would still work, after everything that's happened? My sister was _in love_ with you, Timmy. That's not something a person can get over very easily..."

The brunet released a huff from his nose as he turned around to face Vicky fully again. "We gotta work on you being a little more positive, you make it sound so hopeless..." Timmy flinched as he felt a cool, comforting hand on his cheek, but promptly leaned into it.

"Sometimes you need someone elses perspective to see when you can't fix what's broken." Vicky spoke in a somber but definitely more awake tone.

"...I know..." Timmy broke eye contact with the red-head and bumped is forehead against her chest, his voice cracking ever so slightly.

"If... you want to go check and make sure she's alright... I won't stop you, you know." The older girl slipped her arm out from under her boyfriend, an action soon followed by her untangling her leg from both of Timmy's.

Despite the relative warmth of her bedroom, the brunet instantly realized he missed the physical contact between himself and Vicky as he began to rise up off the bed. "Thanks. I'll just be a minute-"

 _Bzzt!_

"Hm? That was... Fast..." The teen grabbed his phone as he swung his legs off the bed and moved into a sitting position on the edge of it.

"Tootie?" Vicky propped herself up on her elbow, her head supported by her hand.

"No... Actually. It's Chester..." Timmy read the text sent by his blond friend, relief washing over him as he did.

 _:No worries, dude. I swung by her house and picked her up about an hour ago, we're at Grillby's now. You wanna tell me what's got her so upset? Or maybe come hang out, at least?:_

"Huh. Guess he came and picked her up an hour ago, according to the text he just sent me." Timmy leaned over and placed his phone down on the bedside table, then felt part of the mattress behind him depress as he leaned back over. The next sensation he felt was two slender arms coiling back around his chest, their owner's knees brushing up against his back.

"Good. Tootie's safe, so now you can calm down and answer a _very_ important question..." Vicky's chin came to rest on the boy's shoulder, her hair tickling his neck a bit, causing the sensitive skin to break out with goosebumps again.

Timmy couldn't suppress the grin on his face now, what with his worries being over and Vicky speaking to him in a tone that made his spine tingle. "Which is...?"

"Now that I'm awake and have _literally_ no chance of falling back asleep for at least a couple hours..." The red-head positioned her head in such a way so she could sultrily whisper into the teen's ear, making her warm breath wash over it. "How are me and my cute little Twerp going to pass the time...?"

Timmy shuddered a little. Even without sex being a factor in their relationship, Vicky _really_ knew how to get his motor running... And tease him when she did, of course. "I dunno. I'm sure we'll think of _something_..."

 _Chester's POV..._

The blond teen leaned against the bar; phone in hand, and awaiting a reply text he already knew wouldn't come. "Rrgh... If you're so damn worried about her, why don't you come and _see_ her?" Chester grumbled out as he pushed himself off the bar and made his way back over to Tootie. As he slid back into his seat across form the raven-haired girl, he noticed a faint smile dance across her lips.

"Took you long enough."

"Took some convincing to get the chef to make your... Eugh... _Veggie burger_." Chester grimaced once more, the very words leaving a bad taste on his tongue. "Since when are you a vegan?"

"I never said I was." Tootie shrugged, then shifted her weight onto her right elbow on the table, using it to support her head.

"Then why-"

"Because it's fun to irk you." Tootie remarked nonchalantly, sipping her drink once she finished. "And have you ever _tried_ a veggie burger? They're not as awful as you think they are..."

"No, my tongue isn't dead. I prefer real meat, keep your weird beans to yourself." Chester shook his head back and forth in vehement denial of his friend's suggestion that he eat... _Tofu_... "By the way, not to change the subject, but Timmy texted me while I was ordering the food." The blond took a moment to gauge the girl's reaction, watching as she momentarily averted her gaze, then refocused it on her fingers, now being drummed against the top of their table. "He was worried because you haven't texted him back."

Again, Chester scanned Tootie for any sort of reaction, though all she did was continue to stare at her drumming fingers.

"Did you block him from your phone? Or do you just not want to text him back? Tootie?" The teen stuck his foot out under the table, giving the bespectacled girl's leg a small nudge to get her attention.

 _That_ seemed to be enough to get Tootie to look up at him again, though her smile was by now replaced with a frown. "So... What did you want?"

"Hm?" Chester looked at the girl across from him quizzically. _"What do I want?"_ "What's that supposed to mean?"

"We agreed on a deal, since you're taking me out to dinner. What did you want?" Tootie narrowed her eyes at her blond friend suspiciously.

"Ah..." It was Chester's turn to stare down at the table, then breathe out a puff of air in thought, quickly realizing that Tootie was either stalling, or trying to change the subject entirely. "Well... I wanted to know... What happened between you and Timmy." He shot the girl an apologetic look, feeling somewhat bad for essentially tricking her into telling him of the apparent secret between her and his best friend.

The raven-haired girl flinched slightly. She'd underestimated her friend, and as much as she wanted to just make a hasty exit, she couldn't. Her legs suddenly felt heavier than stone, seemingly due to her brain unconsciously _wanting_ someone for her to lean on. "It's my problem, Chester... Mine and Timmy's." Tootie clarified.

Chester leaned in, a serious look coming over his face. "And you're _both_ my best friends. You told me Timmy _knows_ what he did, but he hasn't told me, and you won't even talk to him. I know _something_ happened between you two, because you were both super-tight with each other until a couple months ago. And since _he_ won't tell me, I'm asking you to."

"Chester... I really don't-" Tootie sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose, feeling that familiar heat and prickling in her eyes. "I... Can't."

"Why not? What did he do that was so bad that he won't tell me, and you _can't_?" The blond teen again found himself at a loss, and mentally cursed his bad luck-bringing last name. He had almost no experience when it came to comforting people, and even though he was friends with Tootie, she was a girl, something he had even _less_ experience with, considering the fact that the one girl he crushed on, Veronica, still didn't give him the time of day. _"Least I know how Timmy felt with Trixie... Wait..."_ "Is he dating Trixie? Were you two dating? Did he break up with you to date Trixie?" Chester rattled off questions as each scenario popped into his head, though he didn't particularly believe any of them.

"What? No... No, Timmy told me himself that he got tired of Trixie and how she was. Last time he even mentioned her, we were in agreement that she's a bit- ...Not nice person."

Chester mentally chuckled as Tootie censored herself. Not like she needed to, they were both sixteen, and it wasn't as though they were in danger of getting a time out for swearing anymore. Still, he couldn't deny that the habit was somewhat cute; and, were he not trying to get her to open up, would probably tease her for it.

"And we didn't..." Tootie sighed as she brought her hand up to her face again, this time slipping her fingers under her glasses to rub at her eyes tiredly. "We never dated, Timmy... Found someone else..."

"Oh..." The blond leaned back into his seat. "Well damn. Wonder why he never..." Chester scratched at his chin thoughtfully. "So... Do you know who it is?"

 _Tootie's POV..._

The girl sharply inhaled before she continued. She could feel the tears welling up, her body growing uncomfortably warm as emotions began to take over. "Phew..." Tootie released a shuddery breath, then quickly brought her hand up to her cheek to wipe away a single stray tear.

"Oh, uh... Shit, hey, if you don't want to talk-" Chester put his hands up, palms facing her.

"It's... Fine..." Tootie's voice cracked when she spoke, and she cleared her throat in an attempt to rectify it. "Trust me, I did enough crying for two people when I found out..."

"When you found out... That Timmy was seeing someone, right?"

The raven-haired girl watched as the blond across from her nervously shifted in his seat a bit, his hands now holding the edge of their table as his fingers tapped against the wood. He'd quickly gone from being able to meet her gaze, to looking everywhere _but_. _"Jeez, he's a lot less suave in person when I'm feeling like this..."_ "Yeah... I wish it was easier for me to just... Get over it, but some days... Some days are harder than others..." Her brain immediately recalled the way her older sister had spoken to her, the way Vicky practically flaunted her victory in her face. "And _she_... She hasn't made it easy..."

"The... Girl he's dating?"

Tootie caught herself and shook her head. It was so tempting to just spill her sister and Timmy's relationship to Chester. Not just because she was angry over her sister's actions, but because Timmy, the boy she thought she loved, wasn't even brave enough to tell his so-called best friend that he was dating someone. _"But what would he even tell him anyway?"_ Her violet eyes fell upon the blond across from her. _"And how would Chester even react to that kind of news?"_ "She's... She can be a different breed of mean than Trixie. Trixie is just... Haughty, always acting like she's better than you... The girl Timmy's dating... She knows how to hurt, how to twist the knife just the right way and make me feel..." Tootie's breath hitched in her throat, briefly cutting her off. "I-I'm sorry, Chester. I can't. I still care about Timmy, maybe part of me even still loves him, and I wish it was me instead of... _Her_..."

Chester, seeing how hard it was for Tootie to even speak now, leaned forward and reached over to her, letting his left hand come to rest on top of hers. "Hey. I told you you didn't have to keep going... I get it." The teen did his best to comfort the girl across from him, giving her hand a gentle and reassuring squeeze. "At least, I think I do... Whoever she is... It'd probably be better for Timmy to tell me himself, right?"

Upon hearing this, Tootie looked up, genuinely surprised by how easily her friend had picked up on what she couldn't bring herself to say. "I don't-..." She paused again, wondering if she should go through with what she wanted to say. "I spent all those years trying to... I dunno, get him to notice me? All it ever did was scare him away. I was obsessed with him, getting him to like me, even having a stupid fake wedding when we were all ten..." Again, Tootie's voice cracked, yet this time she wasn't able to keep the tears from falling. _"Dammit! Not now! I don't want him to see-"_ Before the raven-haired girl could complete her thought, she felt the warmth from Chester's hand leave her own, only for him to slip under the table and pop up next to her in their booth. She then felt the blond teen's left arm loop around her shoulders, pulling her into his side.

"I'm... Probably not the best when it comes to this type of stuff, but... You look like you need someone right now..." Chester looked down at the girl, only now realizing the slight difference in height between them. Her glasses had dropped down a little, allowing him to see her eyes unimpeded, the hurt and sadness clearly evident as they began to well up with another wave of tears. "Hope you don't mind settling for me...?"

Tootie shook slightly in a vain attempt to contain the emotions spilling out of her. She hadn't cried-like really cried-in months, not since she found out that Vicky had claimed Timmy, leaving her with no real goal in her life. She couldn't. No one would comfort her, and even if they did, telling them what was wrong would mean revealing her sister and Timmy's secret, putting their relationship at risk. In her mind, it was better for her to be hurt, than for Timmy and Vicky to be.

But that came at the price of her bottling everything up, keeping her emotions in check, pretending like her heart hadn't been torn out, and then occasionally stepped on when her older sister was feeling particularly malicious.

And with Chester holding her like he was, not asking her to talk if she really didn't want to, finally giving her something-some _one_ -to lean on...

Tootie practically sprang forward, roughly crashing into the blond teen's chest and buried her face into his jacket. She tightly clenched part of his olive-green blazer in her left hand, knowing her face would have strange red marks from the material, that her glasses might break, and that her friend's shoulder would more than likely be drenched by the time she finished, but she didn't care.

For the first time in months, Tootie sobbed and cried like a child.


End file.
